Fujin had just driven the two of them away, and yet less than half an hour later, they met again… But he didn't look the least bit awkward!
The massive Serperior was rapidly shrinking. Fujin timed it perfectly and agilely leapt down, while Serperior quickly returned to its "original" size.
Sato and Cynthia stared at the dramatic transformation of Serperior, but still couldn't figure out how it worked.
It wasn't Mega Evolution, it wasn't Dynamax, and it certainly wasn't an illusion…
"This is a deeper application of the move Growth. Want to learn it?"
"…Huh?"
Sato and Cynthia were both stunned and turned to look at the man who had spoken: Fujin.
Fujin seemed to find their reactions rather amusing. He grinned before saying, "Hoho~ Of course, it's not like I'd teach you for free."
Sato thought, 'Knew it,' and quietly waited for Fujin to continue.
"What I just attacked… do you know what it was?" Fujin pointed at the nearby field still covered in frozen snow.
"A Spacial Rift."
"Oh?" Fujin turned and glanced at Sato. "You sure know quite a bit… That's right. it was a Spacial Rift!
Alright, then let me ask you this! Do you know… why I attacked those Spacial Rifts?"
Sato shut his mouth and shook his head.
As expected, chatterboxes didn't need answers. Answering only got in the way of their performance!
"Didn't know, huh~?" Fujin grinned smugly before continuing, "This all starts with a terrifying war long ago…"
And then, using all the literary flair at his disposal, Fujin launched into a long-winded but vivid story.
◓---
To avoid padding the word count, here's a summary of the tale:
[A long time ago, the super Legendary Pokémon Dialga and Palkia fought an epic battle right here.
Though they eventually ceased fighting and departed, the clash left the space in this area extremely unstable, often giving rise to terrifying Spacial Rifts.
These rifts were small when they first appeared, but if left unchecked, they would expand and eventually form horrifying black holes capable of devouring everything around them.
Hundreds of years ago, the once-prosperous western Sinnoh region was ravaged by the unchecked spread of Spacial Rifts, turning it into a barren wasteland.
Eventually, humans and Pokémon united and repaired one Spacial Rift after another.
At last, they discovered that the source of these spreading rifts was right here, on this battlefield.
Because of the "war" between the two super Legendary Pokémon, this area had sustained irreversible spatial damage, causing Spacial Rifts to endlessly spawn.
And so, someone like Fujin remained here ever since, quietly dedicating his life to maintaining the stability and safety of not only the Sinnoh Region, but the entire Pokémon world…]
Story over!
---◓
Sato and Cynthia looked at him with eyes full of "respect", even if this grand tale of sacrifice had come from Fujin's own mouth.
There was something just a little odd about that… but it didn't stop the two from expressing their reverence.
A Champion Trainer standing at the peak of the mountain, who had never enjoyed fame or fortune… just lived alone, deep within an uninhabited forest.
And what he did… was protect the world!
"So my condition is simple. I can teach you everything I've learned and mastered in my lifetime.
But after I die, one of you must take my place here… and spend the rest of your life guarding these Spacial Rifts!"
Fujin's voice was calm, even though he was speaking about his own death.
But Sato and Cynthia were stunned. The shock from Fujin's story hadn't fully faded, and now his condition had completely thrown them off again.
This sounded more like sacrificing one person to fulfill the other.
But were their feelings deep enough for either of them to make such a selfless sacrifice…?
No, they weren't!
Not to mention, both of them had many irreplaceable bonds still connecting them to the outside world.
Seeing their hesitation, a trace of disappointment flashed through Fujin's eyes. But he quickly let it go.
"Forget it. You two are still young. Even without my guidance, you'll grow stronger than me. It's my request that was too much."
Fujin spoke calmly, but his words made Cynthia feel a strange sense of guilt.
An old man who had protected the world his entire life… and in the end, couldn't even find someone to carry on his legacy…
Just as the two of them didn't know how to respond, a Spacial Rift suddenly opened slightly behind Sato.
Fujin instinctively wanted to command Weavile to handle it, but then saw a purple🟣/gold🟡 Gengar suddenly rise from Sato's shadow.
"Gengen~"
Gengar gently raised its chubby little hand without any extra movements, and the expanding Spacial Rift instantly stopped.
With the rift halted, the space's natural healing ability immediately kicked in and sealed it shut.
It was healed!
A Spacial Rift that normally required Champion level just to delay its expansion… was now sealed by Gengar with a casual gesture…
At that moment, Fujin began to question himself… was everything he had devoted his life to even necessary…?
Meanwhile, Sato was excitedly communicating with Gengar, seeing if it could completely resolve the problem of Spacial Rifts.
"Gen…"
Gengar nodded seriously, then vanished into thin air, working hard to try.
And Fujin, having weathered countless storms in his life, finally steadied his heart and began speculating.
"Your Gengar… once had an extraordinary encounter? Related to Spatial energy?"
"Yeah. It once fused with and absorbed a Gem Fragment from the Legendary Pokémon… Palkia."
"HSSSSS!"
Fujin sucked in a sharp breath, shocked and envious.
Sato wasn't smug about it. He simply continued, "I've already sent Gengar to investigate. Hopefully it can fully resolve the issue."
"Completely… resolve it… huh."
Fujin nodded, somewhat dazed. His feelings were complicated; he hoped Gengar really could succeed, but part of him also wished it wouldn't.
At least then, it would prove that his life's mission hadn't been in vain…
Finally, under everyone's watchful gaze, Gengar returned to Sato's side. Without needing a prompt, it gave Sato a serious nod.
"Gen!" 'It can be resolved!'
"Gen~Gengengen…" 'But it'll take a while…'
"How long?" Sato asked directly.
"Gen… GEN!" 'Sigh… THREE MONTHS!'
"Let's do it!"
Sato swung his fist decisively and then looked excitedly at Fujin.
"Fujin-ojisan, in three months, Gengar can resolve it!"
"Oh… really? T-That's great then… great!"
"Yeah, um…"
"You want guidance, right? No problem. For these next three months, stay here. I'll do everything I can to help you both improve."
This time, Fujin agreed without hesitation.
On the other side, Cynthia looked at Sato, then at Fujin, and couldn't help but sigh inwardly.
'Sigh… I feel like… I still haven't said a single word in this whole matter?
Sato, ohhh Sato… do you even remember we're technically on an official expense-paid vacation right now!?'